Hey Everyone,
It's no secret that some women don't look like themselves anymore after getting "all dolled up," especially if it's in a photograph that uses today's extreme filters:
Now there is no doubt this woman looks beautiful in both of the above picture. But the topic I want to talk about is when someone is suffering from skin issues, such as acne, rosacea, eczema, psoriasis, seborrheic dermatitis, etc.
As someone who has dealt with almost all of these issues on her face over the years, sometimes all at once (my current doctor and dermatologist disagree as to what I'm battling right now,) I also know the "magic" that makeup can do for one's confidence when going out in public:
Especially after going through a worldwide pandemic, going out and looking like you have a terrible affliction does not go over well in public spaces. Human beings are visual creatures, and usually distracted (and critical) of someone visibly looking like they have a serious illness. I've read about some instances where people (or their kids) have conditions like psoriasis on other larger, visible areas of the body (hands and arms, for instance,) people think they have a contagious disease and will refuse to have any contact with or even sit near them.
Now I know the first thing most will say is, "Wash your face!" or "Your skin would clear up if you didn't wear all that makeup!" And my plea would be to please, get to know that person and their story before making that judgment or offering "advice."
As a chronic sufferer of such conditions, my own experience is that it really depends. OF COURSE poor hygiene and/or the wrong products (or ones that have ingredients you are sensitive to) will make it worse. But during a time when I worked from home, I was able to go without makeup most days of the week and my skin only got worse (mostly due to the cold AND dryness from indoor heating, which for me, always causes my skin to get worse.)
Even the people I've met from CC have seen the difference in person -- I wash off all my makeup as soon as I can at the end of the day, and they were able to witness the angry red patches I was enduring at the time. But, not wanting to look like I'm diseased when I go out in public, I choose the best makeup (highest quality, least irritating ingredients) I can afford, use as light of a coating as I can to make myself look human, then wash it off as soon as I get home.
Right now I'm blessed to be in a somewhat hot and humid environment, so I only have a few isolated red patches, but as soon as I'm back in the cold, my skin will resemble the "before" pictures in the examples above.
Would I be afraid of a potential date seeing me without makeup? Absolutely, especially if we were just getting to know each other. But it's certainly not something I would hide and would accept whatever reaction he had (even if that meant flat-out rejection.) I recently read a heartbreaking account of a woman whose husband insisted she wear makeup all the time at home, because he was "sick of seeing red spots" if she didn't wear it.
On the flipside, I've always felt sorry for men with the same issues, because they don't have socially acceptable way of covering it:
Many years ago, I remember seeing a young man waiting in line at a theme park on a blistering hot day whose entire face looked like this. I was praying for him the whole time, because I knew firsthand how incredibly painful it must be, both physically and socially -- and, heartbreakingly, men don't have an option to try to cover it up, as women do.
* Do you have skin problems, or know others who do? What kinds of doctors and treatments have you been through? What worked and what didn't?
* Ladies, do you use makeup to hide redness, flare-ups, and/or scars, especially in public? Are you afraid of people seeing you without your makeup? Why or why not?
* At what stage in the dating process would you be willing to allow a potential date to see you without makeup?
* Gentlemen, what would you think if your date showed up in her natural skin, and it looked like the "before" pictures above? Ladies, are you turned off when men suffer with acne or other skin problems?
* Men, do you ever wish there was a way to cover your own skin imperfections?
I'm looking forward to an interesting, and hopefully, compassionate discussion. 🌹
It's no secret that some women don't look like themselves anymore after getting "all dolled up," especially if it's in a photograph that uses today's extreme filters:
Now there is no doubt this woman looks beautiful in both of the above picture. But the topic I want to talk about is when someone is suffering from skin issues, such as acne, rosacea, eczema, psoriasis, seborrheic dermatitis, etc.
As someone who has dealt with almost all of these issues on her face over the years, sometimes all at once (my current doctor and dermatologist disagree as to what I'm battling right now,) I also know the "magic" that makeup can do for one's confidence when going out in public:
Especially after going through a worldwide pandemic, going out and looking like you have a terrible affliction does not go over well in public spaces. Human beings are visual creatures, and usually distracted (and critical) of someone visibly looking like they have a serious illness. I've read about some instances where people (or their kids) have conditions like psoriasis on other larger, visible areas of the body (hands and arms, for instance,) people think they have a contagious disease and will refuse to have any contact with or even sit near them.
Now I know the first thing most will say is, "Wash your face!" or "Your skin would clear up if you didn't wear all that makeup!" And my plea would be to please, get to know that person and their story before making that judgment or offering "advice."
As a chronic sufferer of such conditions, my own experience is that it really depends. OF COURSE poor hygiene and/or the wrong products (or ones that have ingredients you are sensitive to) will make it worse. But during a time when I worked from home, I was able to go without makeup most days of the week and my skin only got worse (mostly due to the cold AND dryness from indoor heating, which for me, always causes my skin to get worse.)
Even the people I've met from CC have seen the difference in person -- I wash off all my makeup as soon as I can at the end of the day, and they were able to witness the angry red patches I was enduring at the time. But, not wanting to look like I'm diseased when I go out in public, I choose the best makeup (highest quality, least irritating ingredients) I can afford, use as light of a coating as I can to make myself look human, then wash it off as soon as I get home.
Right now I'm blessed to be in a somewhat hot and humid environment, so I only have a few isolated red patches, but as soon as I'm back in the cold, my skin will resemble the "before" pictures in the examples above.
Would I be afraid of a potential date seeing me without makeup? Absolutely, especially if we were just getting to know each other. But it's certainly not something I would hide and would accept whatever reaction he had (even if that meant flat-out rejection.) I recently read a heartbreaking account of a woman whose husband insisted she wear makeup all the time at home, because he was "sick of seeing red spots" if she didn't wear it.
On the flipside, I've always felt sorry for men with the same issues, because they don't have socially acceptable way of covering it:
Many years ago, I remember seeing a young man waiting in line at a theme park on a blistering hot day whose entire face looked like this. I was praying for him the whole time, because I knew firsthand how incredibly painful it must be, both physically and socially -- and, heartbreakingly, men don't have an option to try to cover it up, as women do.
* Do you have skin problems, or know others who do? What kinds of doctors and treatments have you been through? What worked and what didn't?
* Ladies, do you use makeup to hide redness, flare-ups, and/or scars, especially in public? Are you afraid of people seeing you without your makeup? Why or why not?
* At what stage in the dating process would you be willing to allow a potential date to see you without makeup?
* Gentlemen, what would you think if your date showed up in her natural skin, and it looked like the "before" pictures above? Ladies, are you turned off when men suffer with acne or other skin problems?
* Men, do you ever wish there was a way to cover your own skin imperfections?
I'm looking forward to an interesting, and hopefully, compassionate discussion. 🌹
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